Improvement in melodeons



bindet Ognuna me opio.

J. R. CLUXTON, OF RUSSELLVILLE, ASSIGNOR lO HIMSELF AND THOMAS W. GOR- DON, OF GEORGETOW'N, OHIO.

Letters Patent No. 94,713, dated Sqltember 14, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN MELODEGNS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letten Patent and making part of the lame.

To all whom may concern Be it'known that I, J. It. Gnnxrox, of Russellville, in the county of Brown, and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Melodeons and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Y Figure 1 is a vertical transverse section.

Figure'2 is a top view of the key-board, one of the keys being shown in section.

This invention comprises an important improvement in melodeons, and other instruments of a similar character. The volume\of sound from each key is made to depend upon the pressure of the linger upon that particular key, so that pedals, stops, swells, &c.,imay be entirely dispensed with, and the loudness or softness of each sound be regulated with the utmost nicety by the touch of the player.

In the drawings- A indicates the bellows, and B a vibrating box', which is arranged directly above the bellows, and through which, by means of openings, aI a, the bellows forces the air to the reeds.

The top -or cover of the box B forms a soundingboard, C, which is made of fir or other suitable wood, and is supported along the centre or at other suitable points' by sounding-posts, D D D.

The other operating parts of the instrument are supported upon the sounding-board.

'The sounding-board and the box B, when thus coustructed and employed, increase the power, and at the same time improve the quality of the tones of the instrument to a very remarkable degree, while they can be easily applied, and do not materially increase the cost of its construction. I

The apparatus by which vthe power of the tones is regulated may be described as follows:

E is a box directly above, and resting upon the sounding-board, and the top of which, E, forms the reed-board, the reeds themselves being shown at e.

A valve, F, seats upward against the under side of the reed-board, being held in position, and guided in its action, by means of guide-rods, c c, and a spring, s.

G is a rod extending iiom the valve F, near one of its ends', up to one ofthe keys, li, and serving to depress t-he valve and let the current of air strike the reed whenever the'key is pressed.

It will be observed that the end of the spring s, which supports the valve and presses it up against its seat, is nearer to the centre of the valve than is the end of rod G, which operates the valve. llhe eii'ect of this arrangement is, that if the key be slightl y pressed downward, it will slightly depress the righthand end of the valve, as seen in the dmwings,'g. 1, while its left-hand end'will remain seated, so that a very small quantity of air will pass to the reed, and a soft, low sound will be the result.

But if the key be pressed down with greater force, the right-hand end ofthe valve will be arrested in its downward motion by a block or stop, H, and then the left-hand end of the valve will be unseated, and the whole volume of air will be admitted to the reed, producing a strong, full tone. Y

Above each reed is a box, I, into which the air enters after passing through the reed, and fromwhich it is finally discharged to the open air by means of a valve, J, operated by a lever, L, which is in its turn actuated by a pin, k, projecting down against itfrom the under side of the keys. I

i'. is the fulcrum of lever L, and j is a weight attached to the valves .I J, which closes them and keeps the lever in contact with the vpins k k.

It will be seen `from this description, that the depression of any key will open the valve F, below the reed, and at the same time will, to the same degree, open the valve J above the reed, so as to aEorda free passage for the current of air required to produce the i sound. The sound of the reed will, therefore, be clear of the keys as will give the levers an easy operation,

rendering the action .of the keys easy, and making the sound instantly responsive to the touch.

In order to eliect this, it is necessary to elongatethe lower side ofthe black keys, as shown at K', and to cut in the .under side of the white keys a recess, w, for such elongated part to work in without coming in con tact with its neighboring keys.

The keys can be made in this form as easily and as cheaply asin any other. Their outside appearance will not be different from that of any other keys, and their action will be ensyand perfectly uniform. In consequence of this construction, it is evident that all the swell-attachments, Sec., may be omitted in connection with my improved instrument. Its power will depend entirely upon the players touch, and may be varied at pleasure. Each key acts independently of all the others, in this respect, and while one is' very important results, enabling the player to give much greater expression to the music, and to produce a. variety of artistic and pleasing effects not attainable by any other instrument heretofore in use.

Havingthns described my invention,

That I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The key K, provided with the elongation K', in combination with the key lV, provided with the recess w, :is and for the purpose described.

2. The ombination of keys K W with levers L L,

and valves VJ J, when the parts are constructed-to op.- erate in the manner and for the purpose set forth.

3. The 'stop H, when operating in `connection with the valve F that admits the air to the reeds, substantially in the manner and for the purpose set forth.

4. The combination and arrangement ofthe valve F, guides c c, springs, stop H, and actuating-rod G, when operating in the manner and for the purpose described.

Witnesses: J. R. CLUXTON.

JOHN WiLLrAMsoN, S. A. COLLINS. 

